I'll admit it. I used to be pathetic where he was concerned.

All it had taken was the handkerchief he'd once handed me when I was hurt, and I'd carved the name Lucas Sterling into my head.

Unlike the rest of them, he hadn't mocked me. He'd always been mild with me, polite, and when he happened to cross paths with me he'd ask after how I was doing.

He was the only one who'd remember, on Seraphina's birthday, to have something set aside for me too.

In a house of cold eyes and casual cruelty, those small gestures of his had felt like real kindness. I'd been grateful for them.

So when the Sterling family went bankrupt, I pulled out everything I'd saved.

I sat up with his sick grandfather when Lucas was burned out and stretched thin. I joined that ragtag company of his when they couldn't even afford a decent office, went to the work dinners he couldn't stomach, and drank myself into a bleeding ulcer so he wouldn't have to.

Edmund Sterling's one dying wish was that the two of us would end up together. Lucas honored it.

It was also the day Seraphina left the country.

On our wedding day Lucas got blind drunk. He didn't even finish his vows before he walked out of the ceremony.

That was the day I learned that there was only ever one woman in his heart, and it wasn't me.

He said I'd cashed in his gratitude to trap him. He said I'd been the reason Seraphina's condition had flared up again, that I was the reason she and the man she loved would never be together.

So Lucas made sure I didn't get to be happy either.

Every divorce filing I submitted, he killed. Every job opportunity that came my way somehow fell apart. No freedom. No social life.

He wanted me to sit inside this hollow marriage he'd been cornered into for the rest of my life. He wanted me stuck there. Forever.

"Huh. At least you know what you are."

Lucas's fists closed and unclenched around the folder. Then, abruptly, a dry laugh broke out of him.

"But when did I ever say I was letting you go?"

"You made this bed, Ivy. You're sleeping in it. Whether you like it or not."

"And from now on, don't let me see another mark on you. Ever."

He looked away with something close to revulsion, like he couldn't stand to say more. He took the folder and walked out with long, quick strides. From the back, it honestly looked a little like he was running.

I couldn't figure out what game he was playing now. I didn't want to. I went upstairs and crawled back into bed.

When I woke up, there were a few unread messages waiting on my phone. From the Ashfords. They wanted me at the house. Something to discuss.

That was novel. Since when was I, the outsider, invited to weigh in on Ashford business?

I arrived at the estate at dusk, timed down to the minute. The moment I stepped into the foyer, the Ashfords' faces settled into disgust.

"Taking your time, aren't you? Making your own parents wait. Real gracious of you."

I ignored her and walked into the drawing room, cutting straight to the point. "If there's something to discuss, say it. I have places to be."

Catherine's brow snapped together. She jabbed a finger at my face. "Watch the tone, Ivy! No upbringing at all. Not worth one hair on Seraphina's head!"

I didn't even look at her. I just nodded along. "You're right. I had no mother or father worth the name. Of course I can't compare to your precious Seraphina."

Catherine went pale with rage, mouth already open for another round. Richard caught her arm and pulled her back.

He smoothed his face into something resembling a smile. "Ivy. I know you have reason to resent your mother and me. But however you feel about it, we're still family."

I raised an eyebrow. For him to actually say that out loud, there had to be something he wanted badly. I was curious enough to wait.

When I didn't bite, he continued on his own.

"Seraphina was diagnosed during her trip home. Acute liver failure. The doctors say she needs a transplant immediately. They're looking for a matching donor."

"And?" I said.

Catherine couldn't wait for him to get there. "And what do you think? You donate part of your liver to Seraphina. For God's sake, Ivy, we raised you. It's time you paid some of it back. It's half a liver. It grows back. And Seraphina doesn't have time to wait on your attitude!"

"Don't be selfish, Ivy!"

So that was it. All of this was still, always, for Seraphina. I should have known these two didn't have a single decent intention.

I rolled my eyes at both of them. "Why should I? If it's so easy, why don't you donate?"

"You. You see? I knew it! An ingrate to the bone! A little favor and you can't even do that. Heart of stone!"

When I still didn't cave, Richard's voice dropped.

"Ivy. Agree to save Seraphina, and we'll have your name changed back. We'll acknowledge you as our daughter. Publicly."

He said it like he was handing down a gift from on high. Like I should drop to my knees in gratitude.

I'd seen enough of how shameless these two could be. I didn't even bother laughing. I stood up and walked out.

And at the door I ran straight into two people coming in. Lucas, and the Seraphina I hadn't seen in three years.

"Ivy. It's been so long."

Seraphina leaned against Lucas's chest and spoke in that soft, airy voice of hers. "You were just leaving? I have so much I want to tell you."

She coughed a few times for good measure, and Lucas tightened his arm around her immediately.

So that's what a man looks like when the woman he's been pining over for years is finally in his arms. I'd never actually seen him like that before.

I let my mouth curve, not quite a smile. "Never mind the talking. You two have so much to catch up on. I wouldn't want to intrude. Unlike you, I haven't exactly been missing anyone."

"Ivy, are you upset with me?"

Her lips were white, tears trembling on her lashes. "Lucas was only worried my body couldn't handle the trip. That's the only reason he went with me to the hospital. Please don't misunderstand. I know the two of you are married."

Lucas's brow was knotted tight. Probably blaming me all over again for making his precious Seraphina cry.

Catherine had already started laying into me, every ugly word in her vocabulary thrown my way.

When Catherine had finally worn herself out, Seraphina wiped her eyes and said, gently, "I'm sorry, Ivy. Mother only worries about me. She doesn't mean any harm. Please don't take it to heart."

"I almost forgot. I brought you a gift from my trip. Even if you don't want to talk to me, at least take a look at it. It would mean a lot."

I didn't want to see it. Seraphina wasn't in the habit of picking out presents for me out of kindness.

But Catherine was already bristling, and I didn't have the patience for another scene tonight.

I had plans with Ethan. I couldn't waste any more time here. I nodded and followed Seraphina upstairs.

The bedroom door clicked shut, and Seraphina's frail-girl act dropped off her face in an instant.

"Ivy. Come on. Come see what I picked out for you."

She pulled out a ceramic figurine. A black-and-white spotted dog.

"Look at it. Doesn't it look like that scruffy little mutt you used to have? What was her name again? Happy? Yes, Happy. I remember it died in agony, skinned alive."

Seraphina ran a painted fingertip over the figurine. Her smile was sharp.

Happy. Five years of my life. She'd been my family, that dog.

But Seraphina tortured it to death while I was out working a shift.

By the time I got home, all that was left was the bloody pelt.

That was what Seraphina and I had fought about. That was what I'd been thrown out over, my living stipend cut off, kicked out of the only home I was allowed in.

I was seventeen. From that day forward I never took another cent of Ashford money. Scholarships and part-time jobs. I'd carried myself the rest of the way.

"Look at this ugly, stupid little thing," Seraphina said. "Doesn't it remind you of you?"

"I remember it, you know. She wouldn't stop barking at me, so I had the gardener hold her down. You should've seen it, Ivy. Dumb little thing actually tried to bite me when I picked up the shears."

"I took my time. She was still breathing when I buried her. I thought that was a nice touch."

"Shut up!"

I was shaking with rage. I didn't hesitate. My hand came up and the slap cracked across Seraphina's face.

The figurine hit the floor and shattered. Seraphina went down with it, scooping up a shard and dragging it across her own arm to open a long, bright line of blood. Then she started screaming.

The sound brought every person in the house running. Lucas was first through the door. He scooped her up, and when he saw the mark of my hand on her cheek, his face went dark.